Written by DCist contributor Brett Gellman
Maryland Basketball (10-7, 0-2 ACC) snapped its four-game winning streak after losing to Virginia Tech last Saturday in heartbreaking fashion, 67-66. The Terps were missing Eric Hayes, the team’s starting point guard, for the second straight game due to an ankle sprain, and it was highly evident from the results on the court. Greivis Vasquez took over the ball-handling duties and had a horrid night: 2 of 14 from the field, 3 assists, and 6 turnovers.
Maryland lost the lead with 12.4 seconds left when Tech forward Jeff Allen was fouled and made one of two from the charity stripe. With 9.1 seconds left and down a point, the Terps had plenty of time to run a play in order to hit a basket or draw a foul. Unfortunately, Hokie forward Deron Washington smothered Vasquez on defense, forcing the Venezuelan to take an off-balance three that clanked on the rim as time expired.
It was a game the Terps could’ve easily won, much like their home contest against BC last month. Maryland lost both of those conference matchups by a combined four points. Now facing a 0-2 record in the ACC, the Terps continue conference action tonight as they take on a young but surprisingly successful Wake Forest (11-4, 1-1 ACC) squad at 9 p.m. at the Comcast Center. Hayes is still listed as doubtful, so expect Vasquez to run the point with support from freshmen Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie. After taking on the Demon Deacons, Maryland travels to Chapel Hill this Saturday to take on #1 North Carolina. The Terps need a road win in the worst way and a victory (even though it seems far-fetched) at the Dean Dome would help get Maryland’s RPI back to double digits, but first they need to take care of business tonight against Wake.
In women’s action, #4 Maryland (19-1, 4-0) soundly defeated #10 Duke (13-4, 2-1) last night in College Park after losing nine straight home games to the Blue Devils. Junior forward Marissa Coleman was the star of this matchup of rivals, finishing with a career-high 30 points and hitting 4 of 5 from the three. The Terps, who are firing on all cylinders, travel to Charlottesville Friday night to take on Virginia and then return to College Park on Sunday against Georgia Tech.
